Cartons for the storage and dispersal of rolls of wound flexible film are well-known. Such cartons are typically manufactured from paperboard material and are folded into a configuration conventionally referred to as a trunk-lid box wherein a base or box of the carton forms an enclosure for the roll with an open top, and the lid is folded relative to the trunk at a natural hinge to thereby allow the lid to close the trunk.
A number of criteria need to be considered when manufacturing such a carton. One concern is the ease with which the material can be drawn from the roll. This criteria is a function of a number of variables including the type of material wound onto the roll, the manner in which the roll is positioned or placed within the carton, and the angle at which the material must be pulled from the carton. For example, if the material is highly adhesive in nature, it may tend to adhere to itself thereby requiring a relatively high level of force to pull the material from the roll. Depending upon the degree of tack of the film, and the angle at which the material is pulled from the carton, the roll itself may tend to be pulled completely out of the carton, creating a source of frustration for the user. Morever, once the roll is pulled from the carton, the risk of contamination of the film is increased.
Mechanisms have therefore been devised which perform a retention feature within the carton. In other words, the roll itself may be physically held within the carton such that upon a user pulling on the film, the roll is held against the force created by the user, while still enabling the roll to rotate and thereby dispense film. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,998,656, assigned to the present assignee, discloses a roll restraining dispensing carton wherein the opposite ends of the carton include collars for retaining the roll within the carton. The collars include apertures which circumnavigate the ends of the roll to thereby physically hold the roll within the carton, and also provide a bearing surface around which the roll may rotate.
While such cartons have proven to be successful, it would be advantageous to continue to improve roll retention and dispensing capabilities. Moreover, since such cartons are typically manufactured and loaded with rolls of wound film in an automated process, it would be advantageous to improve the ease with which the carton is manufactured as well.